Clayton Kershaw followed-up his NL Cy Young win by taking home the NL MVP trophy too, becoming the first person to sweep those awards since Bob Gibson did so while playing for the Cardinals in 1968. The Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton—whose candidacy might have been sunk when he took a fastball to the face and… »11/13/14 7:42pm 11/13/14 7:42pm

You might want to sit down for this. After hitting a triple last night, Angels outfielder Mike Trout chatted with Adrian Beltre, and touched the Rangers third baseman's head without him getting mad. »9/21/14 10:27am 9/21/14 10:27am

Over at the New Yorker, Ben McGrath has a brief, characteristically thoughtful essay up about a question that people have been asking basically for as long as the game has been played but which, lately, seems to actually have something to it: What's wrong with baseball? »8/29/14 1:19pm 8/29/14 1:19pm

There's nothing more frustrating than an opposing closer being demonstrative about doing his job. Say, Fernando Rodney getting the third out, then miming pulling an arrow out of his quiver, nocking it, and firing. Infuriating, if it's against you. Yesterday, the Angels got the very best possible revenge. »7/21/14 8:58am 7/21/14 8:58am

MLB Network host Greg Amsinger spoke with Angels slugger Mike Trout during today's pre-game festivities, and jokingly told the All-Star outfielder that he'd come up to bat with Derek Jeter on second base—and hit a triple to drive home the Yankees captain. Sure enough, that's exactly what happened in the first inning. »7/15/14 9:06pm 7/15/14 9:06pm

There is nothing average about Mike Trout. People built like Brian Urlacher shouldn't be able to scale walls and run like a scared deer, all while squarely hitting a round ball with a round bat. The 2014 season has seen Mike Trout put up a more earthbound line than usual: .263/.358/.509 after last night's game. The… »5/20/14 1:05pm 5/20/14 1:05pm

What do Robert Griffin III, Mike Epps, and ESPN's Jemele Hill all have in common? They all want you to go see their boy Marlon Wayans's hilarious new movie, A Haunted House 2, TONIGHT!!! »4/18/14 12:24pm 4/18/14 12:24pm

This has to be a joke, it just has to be. Either it's a joke, or the The Batavia Daily News mistakenly published a Scott DeSmit article on sabermetrics from 2003. There can be no other explanation for this lede: "[c]omputers have ruined baseball and 'Sports Illustrated.'" »4/14/14 9:21pm 4/14/14 9:21pm

For the past few years, Mike Trout has been the biggest steal in sports. He's had two otherworldly seasons, and he's only 22. So on the surface, news that the Angels are trying to lock him up to a six-year deal worth about $150 million makes sense. But it's actually remarkable for how much sense it makes. »2/24/14 2:32pm 2/24/14 2:32pm

Any theoretical negotiation starts from this premise: He is 22 years old, and already the best player in baseball. (And if not for Miguel Cabrera's existence, he'd be the best by far.) We have already accepted that the economics of Mike Trout can't rely on past data, because there's nothing comparable. But if he were… »12/18/13 11:55am 12/18/13 11:55am

Really nice Jonah Keri piece on Mike Trout's increasingly absurd performance in which Eddie Bane, who drafted him, explains that he was too good for anyone to believe he was as good as he seemed. [Grantland] »8/07/13 12:56pm 8/07/13 12:56pm

It's almost surprising that it took Mike Trout this long—his 224th career major league game—to hit for the cycle. But this generation's prototypical five-tool player rectified that last night, and finished it off in style. »5/22/13 9:01am 5/22/13 9:01am